Boot-last.



H. MULLER.

BOOT LAST.

APPLICATION FILED AUG.\.1918.

HENRY MLLER, OF WATERBURY, CONNECTICUT, ASSIGNOR TO THE SHOE HARDWARE COMPANY, A CORPORATION 0F CONNECTICUT.

BOOT-LAST.

Lacasse.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Meer. 1, 1919.

Application led August 1, 1918. Serial No. 247,705.

To aZZ'fwLom t may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY MLLER, a citizen of the United Sta-tes, and a resident of-Waterbury, county of New Haven, and State of Connecticut, have inyented certain new and useful Improvements in Boot- Lasts, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

This invention relates to lasts for manufacturing rubber boots and other articles of footwear. More particularly the invention is directed to lasts wherein the toe or forepart is made separable from the leg or body part to facilitate removal of the last from the completed article.

One means heretofore employed for securing the parts of such lasts together, is a bolt `disposed longitudinally of the leg part and formed with a threaded end adapted for screw connection with the forepart. .This means is open to the objection that considerg `able time and labor must be expended to screw the bolt to the forepart and unscrew it therefrom. Another locking means previously employed comprises a curved spring secured to the leg part and adapted to engage a rigid pin on the forepart. This type of construction is open to the objection that a stiff heavy spring must be used to satisfactorily lock the parts together, necessitating the expenditure of considerable physical strength to operate the catch. A further disadvantage of the construction is that 'due to the employment of but one spring; such spring is required to undergo severe bends in operating the catch with the result that its el'liciency isv quickly destroyed.

An object of the present invention accordingly isto provide an improved construction free from the various disadvantages noted in connection with the devices hcreinbefore described, enabling the forepart of the last to be locked to the leg part with av minimum expenditure of physical effort and time.

Further objects of the invention will hereinafter appear.

Referring to the drawings wherein similar numerals indicate similar parts:

Figure 1 is a side elevation partly in section showing the improved construction;

Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the heel portion of the leg part;

Fig. 3 is a perspective View of the forecut lugs 14 and 15 adapted to be received be- A tween the beveled guide faces 16 formed on the inner end of the forepart 11. The guide faces and lugs lit together in the nature of a -dovetail joint, securing the parts against separation in a horizontal direction but enabling the parts to be separated by vertical movement.

For the purpose of yieldingly vlocking the parts in assembled positiona pair of similarly formed cooperating spring latch mem bers is provided, one of said members being secured .byy a screw 17 to the lug 15 on the leg part, and the other of said members being secured by screws 18 .to the forepart. Each of the latch members embodies a straight fiat spring 19 provided with a lug or extension 20 at one end.` The lugs 20 are made substantially triangular shape in crosssection to provide front and rear inclined surfaces adapting the lugs tol ride over one another in assembling and disassembling the leg and foreparts of the last. In slidin lthe 'separation in a vertical direction. In order to unlocli the parts the leg part is pulled away from the forepart which operation causes the rear inclined faces of the lugs to force the springs apart permitting one lug to over-ride the other.

In the improved construction both "catch members'are free toyield to permit the lugs to over-ride one another, which feature prevents the springs from being subjected to undesirable strains and enables the parts of the last to be locked and unlocked with greater ease and more eflicient results than has heretofore been possible.

While l have described one of the preferred embodiments of the invention, `it is to be understood that various modifications in form, arrangement and materials may be resorted to without sacriicing any of the advantages or departing from the spirit and scope of the invention set forth in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention what I claim and desire to protect by Letters Patent is 1. A boot last comprising a leg part, a detachable forepart, and a catch for securing said parts against relative vertical movement said catch embodying two yielding members one of said members being secured to the forepart and the other of said inembers being'secured to the leg part.

2. A boot last comprising a leg part, a detachable forepart, and a catch for securing said parts against relative vertical movement said catch embodying two yielding members one of said members being secured to the forepart and the other of said members being secured to the leg part, each of said members being provided with an offset face, the offset face on one member being disposed to lockingly engage the offset face on the other member when the parts of the last are in assembled position.

3. A boot last comprising separable leg and foreparts said parts beingdivided from cneanother along intersecting vertical and horizontal planes, and alwcatch embodying two yielding members one of said members being secured to the forepa-rt and the other of said members being secured to the leg part.y

4. A boot last comprising separable leg and foreparts said parts being divided from one another along intersecting vertical and horizontal planes and formed with interlocking portions adapted to prevent separation in a horizontal direction, and a catch vembodying two yielding members one of two yielding members one of said members being secured to the forepart and the other of said members being secured to the vleg part, each of said members being provided with an offset face, the oifset face on one member being disposed to lockingly engage the oifset face on the other member when the parts of the last are in assembled position.

6. A boot last comprising separable leg and foreparts said parts being divided from one another along intersecting vertical and horizontal planes and formed with interlocking portions adapted to prevent sepa ration in a horizontal direction, and a catch embodying two -yielding members one of said members being secured to the forepart and the other of said members being secured to the leg part, each of said members being provided with an offset face, the offset face on one member being disposed to lockingly engage the offset face on the other member when the parts of the last are in assembled position.

7. A boot last comprising a leg part, a detachably forepart, and a catch for securing said parts against relative vertical movement, said catch embodying two yielding `members, one of said members being secured to the forepart and the other of said members bein secured to the leg part, each of said mem ers being provided with two oppositely inclined oEset faces, one of the olfset faces on one member being disposed to lockingly engage one of the offset faces on the other member when the parts of the last are in assembled position.

Signed at Waterbury, county of New Haven and State of Connecticut, this 24th day of July, 1918.

HENRY MULLER. 

